Cristiano Ronaldo defended from 'immense injustice' over his absence from Diogo Jota's funeral - as Portuguese FA chief claims captain was 'closely connected' during tributes

Cristiano Ronaldo, captain of the Portugal national team, faced criticism online for not attending the funeral of his teammate Diogo Jota. This backlash occurred despite other Portugal stars like Bruno Fernandes, Ruben Dias, and Bernardo Silva being present at the funeral in Gondomar.

Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva tragically died in a car crash in northern Spain a month prior. The accident happened just 11 days after Jota married his childhood sweetheart, Rute Cardoso, who is the mother of his three young children.

The reason given for Ronaldo's absence was that he did not want his presence to overshadow the importance of people paying their respects to Jota and his brother.

Pedro Proenca, the president of the Portuguese Football Federation (FA), has now publicly defended Ronaldo against this criticism.